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Revelation Chapter 19- the marriage supper of the Lamb

Revelation 19

Heaven Exults over Babylon

1 After these things I heard[a] a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord[b] our God! 2 For true and righteous are His judgments, because He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication; and He has avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her.” 3 Again they said, “Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever!” 4 And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, “Amen! Alleluia!” 5 Then a voice came from the throne, saying, “Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both[c] small and great!”6 And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, “Alleluia! For the[d] Lord God Omnipotent reigns! 7 Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.” 8 And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.9 Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’” And he said to me, “These are the true sayings of God.” 10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “See that you donot do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

1 After these things I heard[a] a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord[b] our God! 2- This is the “the great multitude which no one could number” found in 7:9. There are those that contend that the multitude here refers to angels. But the reference to salvation in 7:10 and the later reference to the 24 elders and 4 living creatures seem to support the first interpretation. The word “Alleluia” represents the Hebrew word that means, ” praise the Lord”. This word is used frequently in the OT, especially in the Psalms. The Greek transliteration only appears in the NT in the book of Revelation.

2 For true and righteous are His judgments, because He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication; and He has avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her.

The great harlot, of course is Babylon. Babylon is the world systems in rebellion against God. Babylon is a word picture of a society that persecutes God’s people ( Jews and Christians) that God will eventually destroy. The name could have been a code name for Rome which was built on seven hills, which was already persecuting the church. Christians in every generation since have been able to identify their own Babylonia. What are the modern-day Babylonia that we face persecution from?

The city of Babylon lies in ruins today as a testimony to the passing of proud empires and to the providence of God and His judgments.

3 Again they said, “Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever!” – Evidence of God’s judgment on Babylon will be eternal and that calls for Praise from God’s people whose God is a just God.

4 And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, “Amen! Alleluia!”

The twenty-four elders and the four living creatures worship God continually. The angelic realm praise God for the destruction of the worldly system that originated with Satan, a fallen angel.

5 Then a voice came from the throne, saying, “Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both[c] small and great!”6 And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, “Alleluia! For the[d] Lord God Omnipotent reigns! 7 Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.” 8 And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

Finally, the great choir of heaven once again praises God- the marriage of the Lamb has come. vss 7 and 8 are the culmination of human history, the wicked are judged and the marriage of the Lamb and His bride, the church. The clothes the bride wears are the good works of believers, these good works are not religious deeds done for the merit of the believer but works that reflect the work and love of Christ that saves us.

9 Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’” And he said to me, “These are the true sayings of God.” 10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “See that you donot do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

Verse 9 bring us to the fourth of the seven beatitudes found in Revelation. The marriage supper here is a time of joyous feasting that is to be enjoyed by the bride(the church) , especially for those who are over comers who will reign with Christ. In v 10 John falls at the feet of the angel and the angel rebukes him. To worship any person or object is idolatry. The angel makes clear to John and us that the angel is a fellow servant with him and his believing brethren, that would include us. The testimony of Jesus here refers to the witness about Jesus. Biblical prophecy looks to or is dependent upon the work of Christ and its proclamation.

1 Peter 1:12

New King James Version (NKJV)

12 To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us[a] they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which angels desire to look into.

We will pick up next time on v 11 until then may God richly bless you!